The generic identity of Thriller

Thriller is a ‘meta-genre' and is presented in literature, film, television, and gaming. Literary devices such as suspense,red herrings and cliffhangersare used extensively
Thriller has many sub genres, the most popular of these are:

• Action -often includes a race against the clock, agaist an ovius bad guy. lots of guns and vilence. e.g. the Bond movies


• Conspiracy -e.g. Mr and Mrs smith


• Crime-suspenseful account of a successful or failed crime or crimes e.g. The Godfather


• Disaster-conflict is due to some sort of natural or artificial disaster e.g. Stormy weather


• Drama- usually slower paced and involves a great deal of character development along with plot twists e.g.The Ilusionist


• Psychological- In which (until the often violent resolution) the conflict between the main characters is mental and emotional, rather than physical. e.g. The Good son.


• Spy -In which the hero is generally a government agent who must take violent action against agents of a rival government or (in recent years) terrorists e.g. The Bourne Identity


• Religious-In which the plot is closely connected to religious objects, institutions and questions. While suspense stories have always shown a significant affinity for religion and philosophical issues e.g. The Da Vinci code